1. Technical Field
The present invention is generally directed to the field of data communication networks that have a plurality of network elements. More specifically, the invention is directed to a system and method for enabling and/or disabling on demand the features, functions and configuration of network elements using software keys.
2. Description of the Related Art
Configuration control keys of various types are known in this field. The two most prevalent types of control keys are hardware keys and software keys. Hardware keys typically include metal, magnetic strip readable or other forms of electronic keys that can be used on a system to prevent the operation of the system without the key. For example, a hardware key may be configured to plug into an I/O port of a computer system, and certain features of the computer system, or certain software applications, may be prevented from operating unless the hardware key is coupled to the I/O port. Hardware keys are limited in their usefulness, however, as they require a dedicated piece of hardware to operate, and typically cannot be remotely enabled/disabled or configured.
Software keys are generally used to enable a particular piece of software to run. For example, a special password, serial number, configuration value, or some other form of soft information may be used to enable or disable the software program. These types of software keys, however, have limited utility in the context of a distributed network having numerous network elements since these keys cannot be removed or securely deployed elsewhere in the network.
Therefore, there remains a need in this art for an improved software key system for enabling or disabling the use of network elements in a distributed network.